Unruly Process: Future. Present. Past. Afaina de Jong

Unruly Process is the first retrospective exhibition by architect, designer, and researcher Afaina de Jong. Since founding studio AFARAI in 2005, her multidisciplinary work has centered on stories and communities that are underrepresented in traditional architecture, thereby challenging conventional ideas about the field. The title describes de Jong's design practice as an ongoing process of creation, learning, and knowledge sharing—a process that cannot be easily confined or categorized.

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De Jong is the first Van Eesteren resident of 2026. She shapes her residency by looking ahead to her plans for the coming years, in collaboration with a broad network of collaborators and 'co-thinkers'. Simultaneously, she presents a selection of her projects and reflects on twenty years of practice and collaboration.

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In the exhibition, she delves into well-known projects of hers, such as The Multiplicity of Other at the Venice Biennale (2021), the exhibition design for Slavery at the Rijksmuseum (2021), and the outdoor sculpture Kinship Library (2025) for Stichting NDSM-werf. Additionally, she showcases a broader selection of her work, including models, installations, objects, furniture, and research documentation.

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Unruly Process offers a unique insight into how De Jong develops her ideas and projects. From a feminist practice, she draws inspiration from stories originating, among others, from Black communities. Her work—including her educational practice—always invites the sharing of expertise, stories, and even mere physical presence. For De Jong, these are essential elements for knowledge exchange and for building a sustainable, far-reaching community that questions and breaks down traditional, patriarchal, and colonial structures within architecture and design.

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Colophon / Credits

Curation: Maia Kenney
Spatial design: Afaina de Jong
Project lead: Ewa Scheifes and Jorn Konijn
Graphic design: Ise Weier
Technical production: Lika Kortmann and team

Made possible thanks to: Stimuleringsfonds Creatieve Industrie, Cultuurfonds Noord-Holland and Stichting Abe Bonnema.

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